In a typical conventional managed information environment, such as a storage area network (SAN) operable to coordinate access to mass storage devices by a set of users, the storage area network interconnects a plurality of storage device nodes and associated interconnection nodes. The storage area network includes a variety of nodes for providing mass storage retrieval services to users, such as storage devices (e.g. disc drive arrays), connectivity devices (e.g. switches and routers), and conventional host computers for executing software components called agents for monitoring and controlling the nodes in the storage area network. The resultant infrastructure, therefore, for monitoring and controlling the storage area network, defines a complex array of nodes and interconnections.
Management of the storage area network infrastructure is a formidable endeavor. The multitude of nodes and interconnections between the various nodes present a substantial monitoring and control task for tracking throughput, identifying bottlenecks, and pinpointing failures, for example. In a typical conventional managed information services network, a network management application, such as a Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) based application, for example, assists operators and users in gathering feedback from the network and performing diagnostic activities for isolating problem areas, performing remedial action, and improving efficiency of the conventional network infrastructure.
Complex software systems such as the managed information network often employ a timer mechanism in order to notify interested parties of significant time-based or periodic timer events, such as reports, backups, and accounting operations, for example. In conventional software systems predefined or sufficiently automated timer notification may not be available. In languages employed for development of such conventional software systems, such as the C++ programming language, for example, service layers providing support for notification mechanisms may be implemented. In such a managed information network, notification mechanisms typically inform applications and other managing entities of various occurrences detected by deployed entities in the environment. Often, such timer expiration notifications take the form of timer events, or alerts, which a detecting entity reports to a monitoring or responsible entity. The notification mechanisms typically strive to organize and propagate the alerts in a systematic manner according to a predetermined protocol. The predetermined protocol provides assurances that information in the alerts and corresponding responsive action occurs in a timely and/or effective manner to maintain the conventional managed information environment near peak efficiency.